Car-door-operating mechanism.



PATENTED JAN. 24, 1905. A. SIUOKI. OAR DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION I ILBD 0073.22.1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

wrrnsssis fww 'fla 7 No. 780,834. PATENTED JAIL-24, 1905. A. 'STUCKI.

OAR DOOR OPERATING'MEGHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED OUT. 22 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

I u o INVENTOR I Q :w S l llliax I u on. no w V o Mg GM? WITNESS'S z/asrm UNITED STATES Patented: January 24, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

ARNOLD STUCKI, OF ALLEGHENY, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO STAND- ARD STEELOAR COMPANY, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, A COR- PORATION OFPENNSYLVANIA.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 780,834, dated January24, 1905.

Application filed October 22, 1904- Serial No. 229,642.

T at whom, it may concern:

dent of Allegheny, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania,have invented a '5 new and useful Improvement in Oar-DoorOperatingMechanism; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,and exact de scription thereof.

' My invention relates to door operating mechanism for hopper andsimilar railwaycars.

The object of my invention is to provide operating means for thecar-doors which is so arranged that it is easy of access, which can beeasily applied to the cars, which is inexpensive, which is free fromfriction in transmittingthe motion, and which has less wear and. alonger life than devices heretofore used.

The invention consists, generally stated, in providing anoperating-shaft for the hopper and similar doors, together with apowertransmitting shaft having its end located in such position that itis easy of access for actuation and which is connected to theoperating-shaftby auniversal or similar flexible connection.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side view of one-half of ahopper-bottom car, showing my invention applied thereto.

3 Fig. 2 is an end view of the same. Fig. 3 is a transverse section, theleft half being taken on the line 3 3 and the right half being taken onthe line 3* 3, Fig. 1; and Figs. 4 and 5- are detail views of themember. I

My invention may be applied to railwaycars of any kind or descriptionhaving loaddischarging doors mounted on horizontal pivots, whetherbottom or side doors and irrespective of whether the doors extendlongitudinally or transversely of the car.

In the accompanying drawings my invention has been shown applied to aside-discharging hopper-bottom car in which the doors-are arrangedlongitudinally of the car; but it will be understood that this is forpurposes of illustration only and that the invention is not limflexibleconnecting 35 ited to this type of car, but is equally appli- Be itknown that I, ARNOLD S'ruoxi, a resi' cable to a car having eitherhorizontal, vertical, or inclined doors or doors extending transverselyof the car.

The car-body has the usual sides 1, ends 2, and bottom or floor 3. Thesemay be of any preferred type or form. The drawings show these partsconstructed of metal; but this obviously is not necessary. In theparticular car shown the floor slopes from the ends toward thetransverse center of the car and also slopes from the longitudinalcenter downwardly toward the sides thereof. The dooropenings in thiscase are located between the lower edge of the car sides and the outeredges of the sloping floor-plates L, as shown clearly in Fig. 3. Thesedoor-openings are closed by means of doors 6, hinged on horizontalpivots 7, secured to the lower edges of the car sides. connected bysuitable means, such as chains 8 or links or other connecting means, toan operating-shaft9. vThelatter is mounted in suitable bearings andextends horizontally, and in the particular type of car shown this shaftextends longitudinally of the car and is mounted underneath the centersills. With transversely-arranged doors this operating-shaft would bemounted transversely of the car. Connected to this operating-shaft istheactuating-shaft 10, which is practically an extension of theoperating-shaft 9, being in tandem therewith, and which extends at anangle thereto in order that its outer end may be brought to a point ofeasy access. In the car shown this extension projects diagonallyupwardly through the body-bolster and has its end located slightly abovethe end sill of the car, at which point it is easy of access foroperation, as the operator can stand on the projecting end sill andapply the power to said shaft. Suitable bearings are provided for thisactuating-shaft, the outer end being supported in a shown provided witha squared outer end for The lower edges of these doors are receiving ahand-Wheel, crank, or the like. The usual ratchet-wheel 16 and detent 17are applied for holding said shaft against rotation.

The extension 10 is coupled to the operating-shaft 9 by a suitableflexible connector, which will permit said extension to be disposed intandem with and at an angle with reference to the operating-shaft inorder that the operating end of the extension-shaft may be brought to aconvenient place for actuation. This flexible connector may consist ofan interposed flexible coil, rubber disk with washers, spherical jointswith radial stops, or other forms. That shown in the drawings is awell-known form of universal coupling. This comprises a member 20,connected to the operating-shaft 9, and a similar member 21, connectedto the extension 10. These members are forked, as shown, and between theforked ends and pivoted to both is the intermediate connecting member24, having mem bers 25 and 26 at right angles to each other and hinged,respectively, to the forks of the two members 20 and 21. This hinging isconveniently secured by providing the various members with holes throughwhich pass suitable pivot-pins 27. This manner of connection permits theshafts 9 and 10 to assume an angular relation to each other and still torotate freely. The members 20 and 21 can be connected to theirrespective shafts by any suitable means. As shownin the drawings, thesemembers are shown as castings provided with holes into which the ends ofthe shafts project and in which they aresecured by suitable transversepins 28. As shown in the drawings, the shaft 9 is round, as it actsmerely as a winding-shaft; but, if desired, it may be square, and it maybe connected to the doors by means of cranks and links or other suitablemeans.

It is obvious that when the shaft 10 is retated its movements will becommunicated to the winding-shaft 9, thus pulling on the chains or otherconnecting means and closing the car-doors. The connection between theactuating-shaft l0 and winding or operating shaft 9 is very simple ofconstruction, has practically no friction, so that the motion istransmitted with a minimum loss, and the life of the device is long. Thedevice can be easily applied to a car, and the actuating end of theshaft is of easy access. Prior to this time it has been the custom tomake the actuating-shaft separate from the winding or operating shaftand to connect the two together by trains of gears, sprocket wheels andchains, or winding-drums and chains, which is not only cumbersome, butresults in a large amount of friction in transmitting the power. All ofthis is overcome by my invention.

What I claim is- 1. Door-operating mechanism for railwaycars in whichthe doors are mounted on horizontal pivots, comprising a horizontaloperating-shaft connected to the door, an extension-shaft in tandemtherewith and extending outwardly therefrom with its end located so asto be of easy access, and a flexible connection between said operatingand extension shafts.

2. Door-operating mechanism for railwaycars provided with doors mountedon horizontal pivots, comprisinga horizontal operatingshaft connected tothe door, an extension-shaft in tandem therewith and extending outwardlytherefrom and at an angle to the operatingshaft, and a flexibleconnection between said extension and operating shafts.

3. Door-operating mechanism for railwaycars provided with doors mountedon horizontal pivots, comprising a horizontal operatingshaft connectedto the door, an extension-shaft in tandem therewith and extendingoutwardly and upwardly therefrom, and flexible connecting means unitingsaid operating and extension shafts.

4- Door-operating mechanism for railwaycars provided with doors hingedon horizontal pivots, comprising a horizontal operatingshaft connectedto the doors and extending longitudinally of the car, an extension-shaftin tandem therewith and projecting at an angle therefrom and toward theend of the car, and flexible connecting means joining said operating andextension shafts.

5. Door-operating mechanism for railwaycars provided with doors hinged011 horizontal pivots and longitudinally of the car, comprising anoperating-shaft connected to the doors and extending longitudinally ofthe car, an extension-shaft in tandem therewith and extending upwardlytherefrom with its ends located above the end sill of the car, andflexible connecting means connecting said operating and extensionshafts.

6. Door-operating mechanism for railwaycars provided with doors hingedon horizontal pivots, comprising a horizontal operatingshaft connectedto the doors, an extensionshaft extending outwardly therefrom and at anangle thereto, and a universal joint connecting said operating andextension shafts.

7. Door-operating mechanism for railwaycars provided with doors hingedon horizontal pivots, comprising a horizontal operatingshaft connectedto the doors, an extensionshaft in tandem therewith and extendingoutwardly therefrom and at an angle thereto, and a universal connectingmember connecting said operating and extension shafts and comprising twosections united by an intermediate section hinged to both of saidsections by pivots arranged at right angles to each other.

8. Door-operating mechanism for railwaycars provided withlongitudinally-arranged In testimony whereof I, the said ARNOLD STUGKI,have hereunto set my hand.

ARNOLD 'sTUoKI.

.Witnesses':

ROBERT C. TOTTEN, G. KREMER.

